ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED NOVELS OF 2023
‘Clemence Michallon has written a classic… Daring and completely satisfying’ James Patterson
‘Breathtakingly brilliant’ Edel Coffey
‘I was desperate to find out what happened’ Araminta Hall
‘Truly unforgettable’ Alafair Burke
He took you and you have been his for five years. But you have been careful. Waiting for him to mess up.
It has to be now.
Aidan Thomas is a hardworking family man and a respected member of his community. He’s also a kidnapper and serial killer who has murdered eight women. And there’s a ninth, a woman he’s renamed Rachel, imprisoned in a backyard shed where she fears for her life.
When Aidan’s wife dies, he and his thirteen-year-old daughter, Cecilia, are forced to move. Aidan brings Rachel along, introducing her to Cecilia as a family friend who needs a place to stay. After five years of captivity, surely Rachel is too brainwashed to attempt to escape – and no-one in the town has any idea of the terrible secrets the seemingly perfect father and widower is hiding.
Especially his daughter and the quiet, shy owner of the local family restaurant who has started to fall in love with him…
Both a searing thriller and an astute study of survival, The Quiet Tenant is an electrifying debut in which only the women get to speak and not the man who holds such power over them. It’s a book that you will never forget.
Clemence Michallon has written a classic on her first try. The Quiet Tenant is a daring and completely satisfying mystery; a one-of-a-kind; a bravura feat of storytelling – James Patterson
Breathtakingly brilliant. I tore through it and was absolutely hooked from the first chapter. It tells us so much about how gender works in our society, about power dynamics in relationships and what can lie behind the illusion of a good husband, father and neighbour. An absorbing and addictive psychological thriller – I couldn’t put it down – Edel Coffey, author of Breaking Point
Clemence Michallon has managed to re-imagine the serial killer novel, delivering all (and frankly, more) of the expected suspense and psychological tension, but offering a story about women – the ones who didn’t know the evil that lurked within, the ones who tried to placate or fight but still perished, the ones who might actually survive. Haunting but never prurient, The Quiet Tenant is truly unforgettable. Read it – Alafair Burke
The Quiet Tenant seethes with male anger and aggression and yet its beating heart is about the strength of women and our ability to survive. I was desperate to find out what happened to Rachel and all the characters because I was so invested. Beautifully written and observed – Araminta Hall, bestselling author of Perfect Strangers and Everything and Nothing
I loved this book so much. So disturbing but so beautifully written. Clemence Michallon is an author to watch out for. A truly outstanding debut – Khurrum Rahman, author of the Jay Qasim trilogy
The tension in The Quiet Tenant grips from the very first page. The novel’s emotional intensity never lets go, keeping hold until the very last page. A wonderful debut – Rob Gold, author of Eleven Liars
Stunning. Terrifying. Impossible to put down. A remarkable achievement – Lisa Ballantyne, author of Richard and Judy bestseller The Guilty One
A mystery that is at once riveting and heartrending, The Quiet Tenantis a sharply insightful look at what it means to live and love as a woman in this harrowing world. It is truly extraordinary – Kimberly McCreight, New York Times bestselling author of Friends Like These
